Paper napkin



M. HOUSEN PAPER NAPKIN Nov. 5 Ii934.

Filed May 9, 1934 Patented Nov. 6, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PAPER NAPKIN Morris Housen, Erving, Mass.

Application May 9; 1934, Serial No. 724,711

2 Claims. (Cl. 206-57) This invention relates to paper napkins and particularly to paper napkins which have been folded for the purpose of being stacked in a dispenser from which they are withdrawn one at a 5 time.

The napkin dispensers which are commonly used in restaurants and similar places are provided with an opening in the front through which the end napkin of the stack of napkins contained therein may be withdrawn.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel folded napkin designed to be stored in a dispenser of this type and which presents a folded edge extending transversely of the opening in the dispenser and which may be readily grasped by a person to withdraw the napkin from the dispenser.

In order to give an understanding of the invention I have illustrated in the drawing a selected embodiment thereof which will now be described after which the novel features will be pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawing, Fig. 1 is a view of the paper napkin before it is folded or after it has been unfolded;

Fig. 2 shows the first step in the folding of the napkin;

Fig. 3 shows the napkin in strip form after the first zigzag fold has been completed; Fig. 4 shows the second step of folding the napkin;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the folded napkin;

Fig. 6 is a front view of the folded napkin; Fig. 7 illustrates a; dispenser having therein a stack of napkins embodying this invention.

In the drawing 1 indicates a dispenser for paper napkins, such as is commonly used in restaurants and similar eating places, said dispenser having an opening 2 in the end or side through which the napkins are dispensed. The paper napkin is indicated at 3.

In accordance with the'present invention this paper napkin is first folded in zigzag fashion along parallel lines to provide an elongated plural-ply strip and then said strip is folded in zigzag fashion along parallel lines extending transversely to the first lines of fold thereby to present a folded napkin having a plurality of smaller plural-ply sections and at least one other plural-ply section longer than the first-named sections, the smaller sections being connected by a fold extending transversely of the folded napkin and spaced from the end of the longer section.

In the particular embodiment of the invention illustrated the napkin 3 is first folded along two parallel lines 4 and 5 to make a three-ply elongated strip 9 but the invention is .not limited to the use of two fold lines as the napkin 3 may be folded along any desired number of parallel lines to provide an elongated strip having a greater number of plies than the three plies shown. Furthermore, in the particular structure illustrated in the drawing the fold lines 4 and 5 have such a relation that the three sections 6, 7 and 8 constituting the three plies of the strip 9 are of equal width but the invention would not be departed from if these sections were of different widths. The elongated strip 9, which presents the open ends 15, 16, is then folded again on the zigzag fashion along a plurality of transverse lines so as to provide a plurality of smaller plural-ply sections and at least one longer plural-ply section.

In the construction shown in the drawing the strip 9 is folded in zigzag fashion along two transverse lines 10 and 11 as seen in Fig. 4, which are illustrated as being so disposed that the two sections 12 and 13 on each side of the folding line 11 have substantially the same area while the section 14 is longer than the other two sections 12 and 13. I wish to state, however, that the invention is not limited to this particular relation between the folding lines 10 and 11 and that the invention would not be departed from if the strip 9 were folded zigzag fashion along more than two transverse lines or if the smaller sections produced by this second zigzag fold were not of the same area.

In the construction shown in the drawing the folding of the strip 9 along the line 11 produces a folded edge 11a and the folding of the strip along the line 10 produces another folded edge 10a. Since the folding lines 10 and 11 are spaced the same distance apart as the distance between the folding line 11 and the open end 15, but a less distance apart than the distance between the folding line 10 and the open end 16, the folded napkin shown in Fig. 5 will present at one end the registering folded edge 10a and open edge 15, and at the other end the open edge 16 and said napkin will also present the folded edge 11a which extends transversely and is spaced from the open end 16.

The portion of the folded napkin between the folded edge 11a and the end formed by the open end 15 and closed end 100. has several times as many plies or thicknesses as the portion of the folded napkin between the closed end 1111 and the open end 16.

The napkins are designed to be placed in the container or dispenser 1 with the open end 16 at the top as indicated in Fig. 4. Because of the fact that the portion of each folded napkin between the folded edge 11a and the open edge 16 is of less thickness than the body of each napkin it will follow that the upper portion of the stack of napkins in the container will be less firmly compressed together than the portion below the folded edge 11a.

To remove a napkin a person grasps the folded edge lie between the finger and thumb and pulls outwardly on the napkin. Since the portions of the napkins above the fold 11a are more loosely arranged and less firmly pressed together than the portions of the napkins below the line of fold lie, the person withdrawing a napkin can easily force the upper portion of the stack of napkins backwardly so as to facilitate the entrance of the finger behind the fold 11a of the end napkin of the stack of napkins.

I claim:

1. A folded napkin to be stored in and dispensed from a napkin dispenser, said napkin being formed from a sheet of paper folded along parallel lines to provide an elongated plural-ply strip, said strip being folded in zigzag fashion along parallel lines extending transversely to the first lines of fold to present a folded napkin having two smaller plural-ply sections and another plural-ply section longer than the other sections, the smaller sections being connected by a fold extending transversely of the folded napkin and spaced from the end ,of the longer section.

2. A folded napkin formed from a sheet of paper folded along parallel lines which are spaced equal distances from opposite edges of the sheet and from each other, thereby forming a threeply strip with the three plies co-extensive in area, said strip being then folded zigzag fashion along two lines extending transversely to the first-named fold lines, the said lines being spaced apart a distance equal to the distance between one fold line and the adjacent end of the strip but less than the distance between the other fold line and the opposite end of the strip, whereby one end of the folded napkin is formed by a folded edge and a three-ply open edge and the other end of the napkin is formed by a three-ply open edge, and said folded napkin presents a folded edge extending parallel to said latter open edge but situated between the same and the firstnamed open edge, thereby forming a folded napkin having two smaller plural ply sections and a plural ply section longer than said two sections;

MORRIS HOUSEN. 

